Letters to the Editor December 2016

Do you enjoy going for walks, playing backgammon or cribbage, chess or checkers, afternoon tea or baking? If you do, then Point Roberts Circle of Care would like to meet you. Please call 945-5222 or email prcircleofcare@gmail.com

Dina Boykiw

Point Roberts

The Editor:

What a shock! Now, will we get the appropriate fire department or the fire department’s dream list fulfilled? I came to the Point in 1998, and I could probably count on my fingers the serious fires that needed any more than we had.

At one meeting there was admiring talk of a “wild fire” special fire truck. Really? Can anyone remember the last serious wild fire that threatened life, limb and property?

Patricia Birchall

Point Roberts (online comment)

The Editor:

Now that the campaign is over, where do we go from here? Believe it or not, there is pending legislation in the U.S. Congress that enjoys wide bipartisan support. HR 3119, the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act is one such bill, with over 220 bipartisan cosponsors.

Representatives Rick Larsen and Suzan DelBene are cosponsors, along with others from the Washington state delegation, including Republicans.

HR 3119 ensures expanded education, training, research and public awareness of palliative care impact on patients, families and professional caregivers. The legislation would lift burdens for all ages, but would have tremendous positive impact on our aging population.

HR 3119 addresses life-and-death issues – improving care for older adults, supporting overburdened family caregivers, guaranteeing people with serious illness the kind of care that respects their goals and wishes, and building an age-friendly health system that works seamlessly across the continuum of care. These issues play a decisive societal role in the future health of our nation, our workforce, and our
economy.

Historically, some of the biggest legislative successes happen in lame duck sessions. Please encourage your elected representatives to pass HR 3119 (and its companion Senate bill, S 2748) before this session ends on December 31. Passing this legislation would be much-needed validation that Congress can work for We, the People.

Micki Jackson

Bellingham

The Editor:

As Thanksgiving approaches, I feel especially thankful to live amid the outrageous beauty of the Pacific Northwest. I find myself reflecting on the original native inhabitants whose philosophy honors and protects the land, while I look into the future and contemplate the forces that
threaten us.

Indigenous tribes were the first true Americans. They thrived and lived in harmony with nature for thousands of years. It’s only been 400 years since the New World was “colonized.”

Unfortunately, most failed to appreciate First Nations peoples and the result was vicious destruction of valuable culture and crippling their means of existence.

We may be gaining wisdom, however, since so many passionately defended Lummi Nation treaty rights and worked with the U.S. government to fend off the Gateway Pacific Terminal. But since petro billionaires continue seeking profits and power everywhere, our values and natural resources are constantly threatened. Since July 2013, there have been 13 oil train disasters. In that same time period, there have been 133 fossil fuel pipeline explosions and/or leaks in the U.S.

The U.S. population is now over 300 million and we are the wealthiest nation on earth. However, our values are deteriorating, and the pursuit of wealth and
luxury are risking the loss of what cannot be easily replaced.

In addition, the relentless use of fossil fuels is causing unprecedented global warming, leading to melting ice caps, including Greenland, rising and acidic oceans, and ever more catastrophic weather anomalies. We will continue to pay dearly if we live beyond our means, waste excessively, and refuse to acknowledge that only by converting to clean energy can we restore and preserve ecosystems, species, plants and soil, clean water and air, and other natural resources.

I believe everyone can do some one thing to save what we should be thankful for. We can start by letting Whatcom County Council and the Whatcom County Planning Commission know that supporting Carl Weimer’s proposed amendments to the comprehensive plan is the proper thing to do for Cherry Point. Learn more at whatcomwatch.org and look for Carl-Weimers-Proposed-Comprehensive-Plan-Ammendments.pdf